


May I Offer You A Muzzle In This Trying Time

by vulcanhighblood



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Discord: Umino Hours, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Fuuinjutsu Master Umino Iruka, Hatake Kakashi Is Trying, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Umino Hours Discord Server 90 Minutes To Gift Exchange, Umino Iruka Needs a Hug, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:35:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27303487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vulcanhighblood/pseuds/vulcanhighblood
Summary: After being bitten by a wolf on a mission that took place during the last full moon, Iruka's worried that he might turn into a werewolf. Kakashi, being a good boyfriend, tries his best to be supportive.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka
Comments: 11
Kudos: 68
Collections: 90 Mins To Gift - Halloween Edition





	May I Offer You A Muzzle In This Trying Time

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kycantina](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kycantina/gifts).



> Written for kycantina as part of the 90 Minutes To Gift Halloween challenge on The Umino Hours Discord server.

“Kakashi?” Iruka’s voice carried into the bedroom from where he stood in the kitchen. “Kakashi?” he called a second time, a ribbon of tension threading his tone. 

It was that tension that put Kakashi on alert, and he was by Iruka’s side in an instant. “Iruka. Something wrong?” he asked.

“Maybe,” Iruka replied vaguely, leaning against the kitchen counter, eyes fixed on his teacup to avoid looking Kakashi in the eye. “It’s probably nothing, but… I don’t feel too well today, so I called off work. I just wanted you to know.”

“Are you going to the hospital?” Kakashi prompted, leaning against the counter next to him.

“Yeah,” Iruka sighed, scrubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck with a sigh, finally looking up from his teacup. “It seems like a good idea, anyway. I haven’t felt quite right since that mission.”

“The one with the wolves,” Kakashi said sympathetically. The bingo books hadn’t said anything about the domesticated wolf pack being trained by the bandits they’d been sent to apprehend, and several members of Iruka’s team had taken some pretty heavy damage as a result. Iruka’s arm had taken a particularly nasty bite, a bright red ring of puncture marks in a half-moon shape across his forearm.

“Exactly,” Iruka agreed, draining his cup of tea and moving across the room, setting it in the sink with a sigh. “It’s been almost a month now, and the last few days I’ve been feeling especially… off. Achy. Irritable. Jittery.”

Kakashi hummed sympathetically, leaning a bit closer to Iruka, examining him more closely. Although he had noticed Iruka seemed a bit more testy the last few days, he’d just assumed the reason was related to students being particularly unruly in his classes. If he was feeling sick, though… “Do you have a fever?”

“No,” Iruka said, “And the bite hasn’t gotten infected, I don’t think.” he lifted his sleeve, slowly unwrapping the bandage he’d worn around the site of the wound for nearly a month now. “It’s healing really slowly, though, so maybe I missed something.”

“It should have healed by now,” Kakashi frowned, leaning forward to look at the bite. It wasn’t particularly swollen, but the marks left behind by the teeth were still bright red and still looked painful. “Didn’t they try to heal it at the hospital?”

“Yes,” Iruka snapped, tugging his arm away and re-wrapping it, tossing an irritated look his way before moving for the door, “which is why I’m going  _ back  _ to the hospital for a follow-up.”

Kakashi knew pointing out that a month was a long time to wait before going for a follow-up would be a mistake, mostly because he was just as bad if not worse when it came to checking in with Konoha’s doctors. Iruka would just turn it around on him, and if his boyfriend was already feeling unwell he didn’t want to add to his stress. “Let me know if there’s anything you need,” was all Kakashi said, which earned him a grateful smile. 

“I will,” Iruka promised, leaning over and pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. “See you later.”

“See you later,” Kakashi echoed faintly, reaching up and laying his fingers over the place Iruka had kissed him. Even after nearly a year of living together, Kakashi still hadn’t quite become accustomed to the easy affection that Iruka showed him at all hours of the day. 

He was still holding his fingers to his cheek as Iruka let himself out of the apartment with a soft smile and a wave.

* * *

When Kakashi returned that evening after a long day of training with Team Seven, he was surprised to find Iruka sprawled out on their living room couch. 

“Iruka?” he said, slipping out of his shoes and moving across the room. “Are you okay?”

“The hospital says there doesn’t seem to be anything physically wrong with me,” Iruka said, voice muffled by the pillow in which he’d buried his face. 

“But you don’t feel well,” Kakashi protested, even though he knew it wasn’t Iruka’s fault that the hospital hadn’t found any reason for the symptoms. “You told them?”

“They suggested it might be stress,” Iruka admitted, “from overwork.” 

Kakashi nodded slowly, easing himself down on the arm of the couch so he could gaze down at Iruka. “You have been taking extra mission desk shifts the past month or so,” he said. “Could that be it?”

“I…” Iruka rolled over, blinking blearily in the lamplight. “I don’t think so,” he said softly, glancing down and gently rubbing his hand over the wolf’s bite on his forearm. “I’m starting to worry it’s something… supernatural.”

Kakashi blinked twice, trying to figure out what Iruka meant by that comment. “Supernatural?” he finally repeated. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know,” Iruka said wearily, “I just… I started thinking, you know? Those wolves were so smart,” he frowned. “Intelligent.”

Kakashi nodded slowly, easing himself onto the cushion nearest to him, cautiously lifting Iruka’s feet to perch in his lap. “You said they were very well trained.”

“Maybe,” Iruka said, voice distant. “Or maybe…”

“Maybe what?” Kakashi asked, leaning forward slightly. 

“It’s stupid,” Iruka said, turning away from Kakashi and facing the back of the couch, though he left his feet resting in Kakashi’s lap. 

The contact made him feel warm inside, pleased that even when Iruka was hiding from him he didn’t truly want to  _ leave _ him. “I don’t care if it’s stupid,” Kakashi said, “I care if you care.”

Iruka sighed heavily, before muttering something into the couch.

Kakashi couldn’t help the amused snort that escaped him. “Care to repeat that so I can hear you?”

“What if it was a wolf shifter?” Iruka demanded, rolling over and scooting up, tugging his feet off of Kakashi’s lap as he sat up. 

Kakashi mourned the loss of contact even as he blinked in surprise at Iruka’s statement. “A wolf shifter?” he repeated. “You mean, like a… werewolf?”

Scrubbing at the scar that crossed his nose, Iruka sighed, shutting his eyes in a grimace of self-recrimination. “It’s stupid, I know.”

“No, no,” Kakashi said, “I’m willing to hear you out. It seems like you’ve been thinking about this for awhile now.” 

“It’s just,” Iruka scooted a little closer, leaning his shoulder up against Kakashi, “you know that wolf attack? It happened on the day of the full moon. The moon was still out - summertime moons, you know,” he added, gesturing abstractly with one hand in the air as if the moon was somehow right there in the room with them. 

“I know summertime moons,” Kakashi said slowly, “I’m not sure how you got from ‘wolf attack on a full moon’ to  _ werewolves, _ though.”

“I didn’t think anything of it at first,” Iruka said, “But the bite won’t heal properly. Like it’s almost resistant to chakra healing, you know? And I wasn’t sure why a  _ normal _ wolf bite wouldn’t heal. So then I started wondering what might keep it from healing properly.”

“Lycanthropy is a sort of curse,” Kakashi said, understanding rushing over him as he slowly began to see where Iruka was coming from. “You think lycanthropy is what’s keeping the wound from healing.”

Iruka nodded, gazing up at Kakashi as he rested his head on Kakashi’s shoulder. “I do.”

Kakashi frowned as he considered the point. “So you think the aches, the irritability… it’s because the full moon is tomorrow?”

Iruka blinked in surprise, lifting his head away from Kakashi’s shoulder to turn and stare at him. Kakashi resisted the urge to grab him and tug him back into the embrace. 

“You know the phases of the moon?” Iruka asked, surprised.

“It’s been almost a month since the attack, and you chose  _ today _ to get checked out. You must have felt some urgency,” Kakashi explained. “I assumed that meant the full moon is tomorrow.”

Iruka huffed, leaning back against him and poking him in his ribs with one finger. “Why do you have to be so smart?” he grumbled.

“Because I’m a genius?” Kakashi teased, turning his head to press his lips to Iruka’s soft brown hair, which was hanging loose about his shoulders. He didn’t usually leave it down, but since he’d been at home feeling sick, he’d apparently elected to go without his usual tightly bound ponytail. 

“Fair enough,” Iruka shot back with a fond smile that slowly slipped from his face, his expression hardening as he continued. “What do we do if it really  _ is _ lycanthropy?” he asked. “What if I… I don’t know, try to attack you?”

“Iruka,” Kakashi injected a melodramatic amount of hurt into his tone, “are you implying that I can’t defend myself from a single wolf’s attack?”

Iruka blushed at that, burying his face in Kakashi’s chest. “You’re right,” he said, his lips brushing against Kakashi’s flak jacket when he spoke, and Kakashi felt immeasurably frustrated that he hadn’t had the foresight to remove it before having this conversation. 

“But what if I’m…  _ feral?” _ Iruka added. “What if I run away and attack some innocent civilian?”

“Hm, good point,” Kakashi said, tapping a finger to his masked face thoughtfully. “If only we knew an expert in barriers and seals who could devise some sort of trap that could keep a feral wolf locked up until the moon set.” He pointedly raised an eyebrow in Iruka’s direction.

Iruka huffed in amusement, slipping one of his hands into Kakashi’s grip, curling his fingers around his hand and squeezing. “I should have talked to you sooner,” he said softly. “I feel a lot better about it now.”

“Good,” Kakashi said. “So. What do you want to do?”

“Do you think,” Iruka said in a small voice, “we could make a barrier cage for me to sleep in from tonight until the moon sets tomorrow? I’m afraid I won’t notice moonrise in time.”

“We can do that,” Kakashi agreed. “Where do you want the barrier?”

Iruka frowned. “I don’t want to cause any trouble for you, so-”

“You know your presence is never troubling to me,” Kakashi interrupted, “I’m always happy you’re here, you know that.”

Iruka sighed, half exasperated, half pleased. “I know, and thank you, but I meant that we only have the living room and the bedroom, and I don’t want to kick you out of either of those spaces.”

“I think we should put you in the bedroom,” Kakashi immediately suggested. “I’m used to sleeping anywhere, so I don’t need the bed, and the bedroom has fewer breakable things.” 

Iruka nodded seriously. “All right, let’s go clean out the bedroom and get those barriers set up.”

It didn’t take them very long to clean out the bedroom, though Iruka insisted on going over the barrier seals again and again until he was absolutely convinced he’d thought of every possible loophole and defended against it. Once that was done, he sat down on the bed and smiled at Kakashi. “Thank you,” he said, once more rubbing his hand up and down over the bandaged bite on his arm. “I feel a lot better about this.”

Kakashi nodded, not sure how  _ he _ felt about locking his boyfriend alone in the bedroom while they waited to see if he would be transformed into a bloodthirsty wolf-monster, but how he felt about it wasn’t going to change the situation anyway. “I’ll see you in the morning,” Kakashi said, even though he knew neither of them were likely to sleep a wink that night. From his place on the couch, Kakashi couldn’t see much of the moon, though its white light filtered in through the kitchen window just enough that he could tell that it was bright, brighter than usual. 

“Kakashi?” came a soft voice from the other side of the bedroom door.

Kakashi was at the door in an instant. “Iruka?”

“I’m scared,” he said softly. “I hurt. My arms and legs are aching, my chest feels heavy and I… I feel like my teeth might be getting sharper?” his voice trembled, and Kakashi wanted nothing more than to throw open the door and hold him in his arms. But he couldn’t. They’d agreed to leave him locked away until the moon set the next night. 

“I’m here,” Kakashi said, hating that this was all he could offer Iruka.

“I’m sweating,” Iruka said a moment later. “It’s not even hot and I’m sweating. My chest hurts. My heart is pounding.”

“I’m here,” Kakashi said again, not sure what else he could say.

“Thank you,” Iruka said softly.

They sat like that, one on either side of the door, listening to the other breathe as the long night stretched on into daybreak. Several hours passed in near-silence, only the occasional comment from either of them a reminder that there was someone else on the other side of the bedroom door. Finally, as morning stretched into noon, Kakashi heard Iruka stir against the door.

“When does the moon rise, do you think?” he murmured. 

Kakashi hummed thoughtfully, leaning back against the door. “I can look outside, if you like.”

“I don’t think I want to know,” Iruka said, laughing self-deprecatingly. “Does that make me a coward?”

“I don’t think it’s cowardice to fear losing control,” Kakashi replied. “I think it’s only natural.”

Iruka shuffled up against the door, sighing. “I’m glad you think so,” he said, falling silent once more.

Kakashi didn’t sleep for the rest of the day, and it didn’t seem like Iruka did either. A few times Kakashi asked him about his aches and pains, and Iruka would answer that they hadn’t worsened, but they also hadn’t improved. Gradually, the sunlight streaming in through the kitchen window dwindled to a warm orange glow, and finally the pale, soft light of the moon was all that illuminated the kitchen. On the other side of the bedroom door, Iruka was whimpering. 

“It’s night now, I can see the moon,” he whispered. “I’m so scared, Kakashi, my heart is pounding so hard I think it might break.”

“I’m here,” Kakashi said again. “I won’t leave you.”

“I know,” Iruka sobbed, a soft  _ thunk _ from the other side of the door indicating he’d rested his head against it. “I know. Thank you. I won’t leave you, either.”

Kakashi smirked a little, and even though this wasn’t really the time for humor, he had to respond to that comment. “Even if you wanted to leave it would be pretty hard, considering the barriers you set up in there.”

“Oh yeah,” Iruka said, shuffling against the door. “They’re still holding steady. Good.” 

“Good,” Kakashi echoed. “Can you sleep?”

“Not a chance,” Iruka chuckled ruefully. “Thanks for staying up with me.”

“Of course,” Kakashi replied, leaning against the door himself. 

“If I do become a wolf…” Iruka said softly, “What are we going to do?”

“Find an apartment with a spare room so we can keep the barriers up without sacrificing our bed,” Kakashi replied, frowning a little at the question. 

“I mean, what if I’m dangerous?” Iruka insisted. “What if you have to - you know, stop me? Could you do it?”

“Iruka,” Kakashi said in a sharp tone, “That’s not going to happen.”

“But if it does,” Iruka’s voice was sharp as he pressed against the door, making it creak ever-so-slightly. 

“If it does,” Kakashi smirked, “I’ll buy you a collar and a water bowl and we’ll  _ figure it out.  _ I’m not leaving you, Iruka. Not for anything.” 

“Okay,” Iruka said in a soft voice. Then, even more quietly, so low that Kakashi had to strain his ears just to catch the words, “thank you.”

Kakashi just grunted softly in response, shifting his weight to lean against the door at a different angle. They had a long night ahead of them.

* * *

“I just don’t understand,” Iruka said, scrubbing at his hair as he stepped out of the bedroom. “I was  _ positive _ this was a cursed wound,” he shook his arm demonstratively. “But nothing happened?”

“Well,” Kakashi said, considering Iruka, “there is another option.” 

“Oh yeah?” Iruka replied, turning to give Kakashi a considering look. “What’s that?”

“You immediately came back from a high-stakes mission, took on extra work at the mission desk, and increased your training regimen,” Kakashi said, ticking the information off on his fingers as he went. “Then you started to have body aches and irritability, and you thought you might have been bitten by a cursed creature.”

Iruka nodded. “Yes, that’s what I said before.”

“You said the hospital staff suggested the wound wasn’t healing because of stress,” Kakashi said. “What if they were right?”

Iruka blinked twice before finally saying, “What?”

“What if it’s just stress?” Kakashi insisted. “You’ve been overworking your body and taking on a lot of emotional weight with that mission and then not giving yourself enough time to really rest and recover.”

Iruka frowned. “You really think so? But what about the wound?”

“Stress can impede the flow of chakra, Sensei, you should know that,” Kakashi reminded him. “You’ve been under a lot of stress, is it any wonder the wound isn’t healing? Your body is trying to tell you that you need to take a break, but instead of listening, you assume you’re turning into a werewolf.” For some reason, at this point, the absurdity of the idea struck Kakashi, and he began to chuckle. “You just need to take a break, Iruka. Maybe we both do.”

“I don’t…” Iruka glanced down at his arm, tugging up his sleeve and unwinding the bandage, staring at the bite, still a bright angry red. “…you really think so?” He lifted his dark eyes to stare at Kakashi.

“I really think so,” Kakashi agreed. “In fact, why don’t we schedule a weekend away? Just the two of us. How does a hot spring sound?”

“A weekend?” Iruka frowned. “But I usually work the mission desk -”

“And the mission desk,” Kakashi said, moving up beside Iruka, curling an arm around his shoulders, “will still be there when we get back.”

“A hot spring would definitely help with my aching joints,” Iruka muttered, glancing down at the floor, his cheeks flushing.

“And I’ve heard they’re also good for the skin - might help heal up that pesky bite,” Kakashi added. 

Iruka nodded slowly. “A trip to the hot springs could be fun.” 

“Right,” Kakashi agreed with a grin. “Oh, but before we go, I need to stop by the market.”

Confused, Iruka tilted his head, staring at Kakashi. “The market? What for?”

Kakashi winked. “To buy you that collar, of course.”

He had to duck to avoid the pillow Iruka threw at him, and the book that followed the pillow, and the second pillow that followed the book, but it was absolutely worth it for the look of interest that had momentarily crossed Iruka’s face before the embarrassed blush had overtaken it. This was shaping up to be a weekend to remember, and Kakshi intended to take full advantage of the alone time the two of them would have together. 

…after Iruka forgave him for the collar comment, anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> As stated above, I wrote this for the lovely kycantina as part of the 90 Minutes To Gift challenge - all of the writing done for this fic was done in a 90-minute period (brainstorming time didn't count so long as I wasn't writing anything down, fortunately).  
> Kycantina gave me some really fun prompts to work with: Halloween (Challenge prompt), Bite (keyword), Red (color), and KakaIru.  
> I tried to include a few of the requests - domesticity, h/c, and I originally wanted to try for horror but I think it just ended up being angsty more than anything.  
> Even so, I'm super happy with how it turned out, and I'm amazed that I managed to pull this off. Wishing the other lovely members of this exchange the best of luck in their endeavors as well~


End file.
